Do I need to claim my Playstation Plus Instant Game Collection?

Just signed up for a year of Playstation Plus. Do I need to download games to claim them for my collection or will any games in the collection be automatically considered owned as long as I am subscribed?

For example, I downloaded Dragon's Dogma right before it got removed at the beginning of this month. Did I need to download it to claim it or could I have waited until a later time and then downloaded it since I was a Playstation Plus subscriber when it was part of the Instant Game Collection? If I would not, is there an easy way to "claim" all of your Instant Game Collection without downloading them all to the hard drive at least once?

Solution 1:

You don't need to physically download the games to your device, but you do need to go into the storefront (either through an appropriate console or through the web interface) and "purchase" the items by adding them to your cart and going through the checkout process. Once you complete checkout, those items will be added to your Download List permanently and can be re-downloaded as many times as you want, even if those items are no longer free for new PS Plus subscribers. You will lose the ability to download or play those games if your PS Plus subscription lapses, but if you subsequently re-subscribe, you will once again be able to download and play those items.

This does mean that free games can potentially be "missable" if you have not added those items to your account before they go back to paid status. While some Instant Game Collection games have remained free for long periods of time, that is often not the case, and you will need to be sure to "purchase" those items during the limited window in which they're available for free.